CHAPTER 115: PRESIDENT CEASAR, ALIEN WHISPERER.

President Ceaser sat with his back to a glass window, his arms crossed and jaw tight. For the first time in ages, he had finally gotten a full night’s rest and yet that was precisely when he missed all the excitement.

Across from him sat his advisors, five of them. Lugard was their spokesperson and he was sitting upright, stiff as a board. His eyes were lowered, his voice low and grim. The cause of his anxiety was none other than the president he served.

There was a gun on the table in front of Ceasar. The barrel was facing the advisors. If anything triggered the mad president, blood would be spilled.

Lugard thought there was no need for the gun, after all, they were all allies. But president Ceasar was more paranoid after Gillian’s betrayal and President Finch’s escape. He was now having everyone spy on their friends and neighbors. All those that betrayed him would be put to or turned into test subjects.

Jade Garwood, Ceasar’s newly appointed secretary stood up and pushed a picture his way. It smelled like chemicals because it had been printed five minutes ago.

As Ceasar looked at the picture an explanation came from Lugard because none of the others was willing to talk. "They came just past midnight. At first it was one then more came. They are birds but we don’t know what kind of birds they are.

They don’t look like normal birds at all and they are big--the size of a small building maybe bigger. We would have to capture one and study it up close to know more."

Ceaser arched an eyebrow. "How can a bird be that big?" He asked incredulously. If he had not heard the rumors about sighting of the bird from all the whispers, he would have thought that they were working together to lie to him.

He was furious that no one had woken him up to witness these monstrous birds in person. As the President, he should have been notified immediately. If he could not be reached, they should have broken down the door.

How could they make drastic decisions like shooting at the birds without his orders? They had wasted half of the bullets they had on the grounds of the White house and had nothing to show for it.

A bunch of useless morons!

Lugard thought that his president was angry about this sudden arrival of monstrous birds and he run his fingers through his hair. "I saw them with my own eyes jet black feathers, long necks, their eyes glowing like red coals. No emotion, no reaction. They just stood there staring at us like they were waiting for something."

"They are very spooky." A trace of concern crossed Jade Garwood’s face. "It was like something from a horror movie come to life. The way they were watching with unblinking eyes..." She shuddered.

"If you have read the apocalypse guides then you know that some kind of monster creatures came out of the mist. You should not have fired at them without first getting a clear understanding of what they were. Stupid!! I cannot believe that not one of you had the sense to think before triggers were pulled." Ceaser spoke through pursed lips

A tiny sniff came from Lugard. "Sir we had to. The monster birds are a threat and they cannot be killed. The men used all types of bullets but nothing scratched those birds. Even Janet and her little water powers proved to be completely useless."

Janet was just walking in, she wanted to speak to the president about the same issue. When she heard her name being mentioned, she paused and sneered at Lugard. "Useless! You did not call them useless when I was leading the convoy to that lab or when I helped you search for supplies.

I attacked those birds with multiple water strikes. Whether it was hard pressure jets or mist suffocation I tried it all. I did more than what your bullets did combined together. You cannot blame me just because the birds have thicker skin or feathers that are harder than steel."

Ceaser’s fingers curled around his elbow, tapping impatiently. "You are telling me that we have a superhuman on our side and yet we did not make even one scratch on the enemy!"

"Are we sure that it is an enemy?" Janet asked him. "The birds didn’t attack and they didn’t move or flinch. After some hours they just...flew away. Maybe they came for something else."

Ceaser stared blankly for a moment, absorbing the weight of it all. His heart beat a little faster_but it wasn’t just fear. It was the bitterness of having missed it. He was sure that if he had been in charge, they would have captured at least one bird and they would have answers by now.

"So." He murmured. "While everyone stared death in the eye I was snoring. Do you all realize that this makes me look like a weak leader?"

"Sir!" Lugard began.

"No," Ceaser interrupted, a faint scowl crossing his face, "You do not understand, if I am not there to show my face at the forefront in the times of danger then I am no leader at all! I am the leader of the greatest country in the world, the man with the nuclear launch codes."

Lugard blinked. There were no nuclear launch codes anymore. But he would not be the one to say that to Ceaser.

Ceasar was still ranting meanwhile, "If those birds were alien species, maybe I would have been able to speak to them. Perhaps they came here because they know that I am the president and they wanted a meeting.

Instead, you morons opened fire on them and declared your hostility immediately. If those birds did nothing but watch then that means that they are likely to be scouts."

Lugard nodded slowly, confirming Ceaser’s theory. "That is right, we came to the same conclusion just before you arrived."

Ceasar pointed at the map on the table which had the Rainhounds mountain circled. "There is only one person out there that knows how to deal with this madness and can help us. She speaks in riddles, acts like a damn prophetess and lies a lot but Moon Raine has always known more than she let on."

"We are already prepared to go bring her over Sir." Lugard said.

Ceasar nodded, "In this time of uncertainty, we need a compass to give us direction and she will do the job well."

Lugard cleared his throat. "She will not come easy. Pastor Salem will not give her up because she is the source of his prophecies. We have not been able to hear from our people that were embedded among Salem’s believers so we don’t know how armed the Rainhounds base is."

"It is going to be bloodbath." Ceasar said with certainty. He turned to Janet and asked, "How many cars can you protect from the rain now?"

"Ten." She replied.

Ceasar nodded. Ten trucks that were packed full of armed soldiers that were trained to infiltrate and rescue hostages was not bad. It would be better than the untrained civilians Salem had on his base. "Lugard, do whatever it takes, bring Moon to me before the sun sets tomorrow."